Posted on 01/19/2009 12:09:32 PM PST by gondramB
WASHINGTON (AFP) – US Defense Secretary Robert Gates will sit out Barack Obama's inauguration at an undisclosed location as the "designated successor" in the event of a catastrophe, the White House announced Monday.
While the eyes of the world are glued Tuesday to Obama's historic swearing-in, attended by outgoing US President George W. Bush and both outgoing and incoming senior aides, Gates will stay away, said spokeswoman Dana Perino.
"In order to ensure continuity of government, Defense Secretary Robert Gates has been designated by the outgoing administration, with the concurrence of the incoming administration, to serve as the designated successor during Inauguration Day, Tuesday, January 20th," Perino said.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Voting is now obsolete.
The irony of THAT decision is HILARIOUS.
I imagine that usually they can’t. Cabinet secretaries aren’t approved by the Senate prior to inauguration day so they can’t designate a disaster replacement. Gates is an exception. Should something massive happen at the Capitol then he’d be it.
Now if we get the repeat of the opening scene of King Ralph, where everyone in attendance gets electrocuted while taking a group photo!
President Gates . . . oops!
Call Karl Rove and GWB and have them crank up the “disaster” machine. Liberals heads would explode if Gates was left in charge.
The Haig Option is in effect!
I agree with your first two comments. As to the third, appointing a "disaster successor" is rarely done particularly when administrations change for one very practical reason...the incoming POTUS intends to appoint his own cabinet. In this particular case, Obama asked Gates to stay on for at least a couple of years so Gates is the only member of Obama's cabinet who is in place and confirmed.
While I hope we don't need a disaster successor, I must point out that a terrorist attack would have to wipe out Obama, Biden, Pelosi, Byrd (Gee, Biden is Byrd Brain and Byrd is just Bobby Big Byrd Grand Kleegle or whatever of the United States of AmeriKKKa as Jeremiah Wright would note.) for Gates to succeed to the presidency.
>>I imagine that usually they can’t. Cabinet secretaries aren’t approved by the Senate prior to inauguration day so they can’t designate a disaster replacement. Gates is an exception. Should something massive happen at the Capitol then he’d be it.<<
That makes sense.
Haig was spot on with what he did that day
I’m sitting it out too, but I’m pretty far down the line of succession.
I agree.
Token in every sense of the word, Bill. Better get used to it.
Bob, Robert that is.
He’s probably at Site R or Mt Weather.
Damned straight. He was a bit nervous on camera for my taste, but he absolutely did the right thing. SOMEONE had to make it clear to the Russkies that the command structure of our government wasn't paralyzed, and that they shouldn't have the illusion that we wouldn't respond quickly and forcefully if attacked.
Being in DC at the time (at school), I was particularly glad that this was made clear to the gangsters in charge at the Kremlin at the time. Besides, he made it abundantly clear that as soon as Bush's chopper landed, he'd hand over whatever authority he had.
Was it 110% Constitutitonal? Probably not; but as one of our Supreme Court Justices once said, "the Constitution is not a suicide pact." With a nuclear Pearl Harbor 30 minutes away, observing all of the niceties isn't always an option. Better to have a somewhat nervous former commander of NATO in charge, just so that the bear minded his Ps and Qs. In this case, the entire military is by now accustomed to taking orders from him - so various bears, dragons and 7th century monkees will be careful.
Imagine the pressure of knowing that if things go to hell in a handbasket, you´re up!
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